Actor Saw 'Clockers' Life Up Close As Kid In Harlem

NAMES & FACES

Mekhi Phifer Tries To Add A Positive Spin In Spike Lee's Urban Drama Of A Young Drug Dealer Suspected Of Murder.

September 21, 1995|By Los Angeles Daily News

LOS ANGELES — Mekhi Phifer, the young star of Spike Lee's new movie, Clockers, has walked through the concrete jungle and emerged unscathed, and now he is high on the possibilities of a world that is unfolding in his favor.

''The name's Mekhi (pronounced Muh-KIE),'' he said.

''It derives from the Muslim holy city of Mecca and relates to water, and how water sustains life and is one of the strongest elements. That's what comes to my mind when I tell people I'm Mekhi.''

Phifer grew up in Harlem, in an impoverished, fatherless situation, across the street from the housing projects where life for some people he knew revolved around drugs, thieving and murder.

But trouble mostly stayed away from him, and at 19, he walked into an open-call audition for a Lee movie in New York - armed with a snapshot of himself from a Woolworth's photo booth - and landed the lead role in a major motion picture.

Clockers is Lee's murder mystery about the pressures of inner-city life on a young dealer, or ''clocker'' (Phifer), who is suspected of a killing.

Co-written by Lee and Richard Price (The Color of Money) from Price's acclaimed novel, it was considered a major purchase for Universal Studios and was originally intended for director Martin Scorsese (GoodFellas), who eventually became its executive producer.

Phifer plays the central character, Strike, an insolent, ulcer-suffering, Chocolate Moo-drinking ''yo,'' a street kid in the rude vernacular of the movie, who enjoys the quick payoff of drug selling but can't take two steps without running into somebody who's out to get him.

''I took a lot of the aspects of my character, Strike, from people I knew in the streets, and I tried to show them a little compassion,'' Phifer said.

The actor began performing at an early age, entering talent contests and doing community theater in Harlem.

Before he had ever heard of the Lee film, Phifer had won a nationwide talent contest and landed a rap music recording contract with Warner Bros., for which he is still working on his debut record.

Phifer, whose rap music name is Mekhi P., said his lyrics avoid putting down women or promoting violence, and he still thinks his music, which he called ''reality rap,'' will be popular. ''I'm here to set trends and paces.''

As for the message of Clockers, Phifer thinks it's anti-drugs, anti-violence. ''You can't really blame people for taking a negative route when they don't have any other strategy, but maybe they can be shown some alternatives,'' he said.

''There's so much positivity going on, the positivity is overwhelming.''